Monday, August 31, 2009

Throughout the weekend, Twilighters from all over are gathering in Parsippany, New Jersey, where the first of what is sure to be many Summit/Creation Entertainment co-sponsored fan conventions is happening. Among the gathered celeb attendees is "Twilight" director Catherine Hardwicke, who is currently juggling a quartet of follow-up projects: "Hamlet," starring Emile Hirsch, "The Girl With the Red Riding Hood," for Leonardo DiCaprio's Appian Way shingle, "If I Stay," and "Maximum Ride."Hardwicke's shifted focus away from Stephenie Meyer's teen vampires didn't stop her from sharing some behind-the-scenes facts yesterday during a Q&A. Fans probably weren't surprised that the director had to get creative in stretching "Twilight"'s budget to do what she wanted. The big shock of the day was the original vision of Robert Pattinson's Edward Cullen, which included a head of long, flowing locks.

"I thought it would be cool if Rob had long, romantic hair," Hardwicke told the gathered attendees. "So we put extensions on Rob and he just hated it. He sat there in the chair for eight hours and was like, 'No.'"

That's an amusing image, I have to say. Pattinson sitting there very patiently for hours upon hours, then turning to the makeup folks and telling them "No" in his very British way. Or do you think maybe he lapsed into Edward mode, fixing them with his steely-eyed stare and whispering no, only to abruptly turn around and stalk away?

For more behind-the-scenes factoids, head over to MTV.com for Amy Wilkinson's full report from the Hardwicke Q&A.